Daniel Bryan Dealing with Another Injury, No Timetable for Return

The former WWE World Heavyweight Champion has been sidelined since early May with a neck injury that required surgery. The hope was that he would not be out of action for more than a few months but instead his recovery has gone much slower than anticipated.

Now, he is reportedly dealing with another injury that will further delay his return to the ring.

The update on Bryan is that he may now also require shoulder surgery, as a full exam has revealed a lot of different shoulder and neck issues. At this point, because of uncertainty as to whether he’ll need surgery and what surgery it could be, he’s out of plans and there is no estimate on when he’ll return.

Originally, it was believed that Bryan would headline Summerslam against Brock Lesnar and would remain as one of the main stars in the company. But the plan was always for Roman Reigns to become the top guy which would be set in stone at WrestleMania 31. Now with Bryan’s injury, that plan has been sped up for Reigns to make his ascension.

After fighting an uphill battle for more than a year and gaining immense popularity, Bryan finally broke though in the biggest way, winning two matches and the WWE World Heavyweight Championship at WrestleMania 31. Since then, things have gone south for the leader of the “YES!” movement.

After defeating Kane at the Extreme Rules PPV, Bryan learned that he has a neck injury that needed immediate attention. He had minimally invasive surgery on May 15th and the hope was that would be back in the ring as early as the June Money in the Bank PPV or Summerslam at the latest.

Unfortunately, his recovery has not gone well and the WWE wasn’t sure when he would be able to return. The move was made to strip him of the championship with John Cena winning in at Money in the Bank.

During the pre-show of that pay-per-view, Bryan made his first televised appearance since that surgery and admitted that still did not have full mobility in his right arm and another surgery may be necessary.

Now if Bryan needs shoulder surgery, all bets are off as to when he can be back in the ring.

About Brian Fritz

Brian is the owner and editor-in-chief of Between The Ropes. He has also covered wrestling and MMA for The Orlando Sentinel and AOL Fanhouse and currently is a contributor for Sporting News. You can email Brian at fritz@betweentheropes.com and follow him on Twitter @BrianFritz.